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I switched to Android after 7 years of iOS

joreteg.com

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Re: I switched to Android after 7 years of iOS

#51

Post by criddell »

untog wrote: post #46
rhinoceraptor wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> implementing agreed upon standards Yeah, except most of your users' devices are still running 2+ year old software versions.

But unlike in iOS, the browser is a Play Store app which is updatable outside of major OS releases. So a two year old phone can run the latest version of Chrome. Why Apple still doesn't do this mystifies me.

Telling users that they have to install a new browser before they can fully use your app is a lousy experience though. And then two months later they will uninstall Chrome because (as far as they know) they never use it.

Re: I switched to Android after 7 years of iOS

#52

Post by toomuchtodo »

untog wrote: post #43
toomuchtodo wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can't find a single iOS app I use that needs either of these.

I'm not sure if you're trolling or sincere here. Of course iOS apps don't need them, they are native. We are talking about the capabilities of the iOS Safari browser.

That's my point. I'm rarely, if ever, in my browser on either of my iOS devices (iPhone 6 or iPad).

If you're not writing a native app, don't bother. Facebook learned this lesson, I'm sure everyone else does eventually as well.

Re: I switched to Android after 7 years of iOS

#53

Post by untog »

criddell wrote: post #51
untog wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But unlike in iOS, the browser is a Play Store app which is updatable outside of major OS releases. So a two year old phone can run the latest version of Chrome. Why Apple still doesn't do this mystifies me.

Telling users that they have to install a new browser before they can fully use your app is a lousy experience though. And then two months later they will uninstall Chrome because (as far as they know) they never use it.

That's not how it works. Most Android phones have come with Chrome preinstalled for a while now. That version is automatically updated, just like any other app.

Re: I switched to Android after 7 years of iOS

#55

Post by Jtsummers »

jarjoura wrote: post #12

I think apps are in a lull right now because most were abandoned and left users feeling jittery about pouring their lives into them. Also few apps spent the effort to take advantage of working offline. If I'm in the subway, I'm basically unable to use anything except games. Although the last couple of games I couldn't play because they were trying to connect to an Ad server that would fail and so the game wouldn't pr…

Not just to ad servers. Some games that have no need for online-only modes are starting to function that way as well. I suspect it was thoughtlessness on the part of the developers ("When would someone ever be without the internet?" "When they're on a cross-country flight!"). This reminds me, I should find a comment box on their site and suggest they fix this, it was incredibly frustrating being barred from a game I bought to play in single player mode just because I was 30k feet in the air.

Re: I switched to Android after 7 years of iOS

#56

Post by itp »

cheeaun wrote: post #31
itp wrote: post #7

Wow. I'm a long time Android user and probably pay more attention than most, and I had no idea web apps had gotten quite this nice. Currently the only web app / web shortcut I have installed is the HackerWeb app[0], which is nice but clearly not taking advantage of all of the functionality it could. I "installed" Flipkart Lite and the Voice Memos demo app to see the state of the world. Clearly it's possible to build…

Hi! Creator of HackerWeb here, just wondering what kind of additional functionality that you're expecting?

Hey! Sorry if that comment came out a bit harsh; I definitely didn't mean it to. As evidenced by the fact that I continue to use the web app over any of the native options, I'm obviously a pretty happy user.

So, random thoughts/feedback:

- I wish I could login, comment, maybe even receive comment notifications? Although the last would clearly be an improvement on HN itself.

- I wish I had some preferences available to me, e.g. always open links externally vs. inside the app itself. (I can long-press on a link and select "open in Chrome" of course.)

- Flipkart has some pretty slick animations. The primary thing that jars me about HackerWeb is how abrupt everything is compared to native apps.

Obviously nothing huge; just stuff I didn't know was even possible. Anyway, let me at least grab this opportunity to thank you for your work!

Re: I switched to Android after 7 years of iOS

#57

Post by untog »

toomuchtodo wrote: post #52
untog wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure if you're trolling or sincere here. Of course iOS apps don't need them, they are native. We are talking about the capabilities of the iOS Safari browser.

That's my point. I'm rarely, if ever, in my browser on either of my iOS devices (iPhone 6 or iPad). If you're not writing a native app, don't bother. Facebook learned this lesson, I'm sure everyone else does eventually as well.

Yeah, because the browser doesn't offer the capabilities needed to render native apps redundant. I'm not sure why we're talking in a giant circle here.

Clearly, the "build for IE6 + Windows" of 2016 is "build for native iOS", which was the original point I was making.

Re: I switched to Android after 7 years of iOS

#58

Post by lost_name »

untog wrote: post #24

I agree with pretty much everything in this article - I firmly believe that we're due a "post-app" world where progressively enhanced web sites provide 95% of the functionality we require. But we're not there yet - I'd love to see better WebView integration into native UI components (UINavigationController and the like), to provide things like swipe-to-go-back, which is monumentally hard to do on the web. But hey. Ma…

I struggle to find the reference, but I'm almost certain that the unveiling of the original iPhone came forward with this intention ("progressively enhanced web sites provide 95% of the functionality we require"), which is why there was no app store or anything until the second release of the iPhone. We were supposed to develop amazing web pages, which could be placed as shortcuts on the home screen and function somewhat like a native app.

Of course, back then, I'm not sure there were any sites that were actually mobile friendly, and developers were more interested in hacking the device to make native apps than using a browser to make crippled apps.

Re: I switched to Android after 7 years of iOS

#59

Post by [deleted] »

Jerry2 wrote: post #5

>So, instead of opening my text editor I placed an order for a Nexus 6P Nexus 6P is notorious for atrocious build quality. It bends easier than a bar of chocolate. [0] Google should do a recall on these things. It bends a lot easier than an old iPhone 6 plus. [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3cWVdLqXCg Edit: I see Google fanboys decided to downvote this comment instead of engaging in a debate. This is not in the…

[deleted]

Re: I switched to Android after 7 years of iOS

#60

Post by aikinai »

jonlunsford wrote: post #38

I also just made the exact same switch, after years of wanting more control over my hardware without jailbreaking, I just want to install f.lux for crying out loud! As a web dev, i'm very excited to loose the chains of iOS :)

How did Android help you with f.lux? Apple just came out with a f.lux copy built into iOS, while none of the alternatives on Android work without rooting.
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